Roots

May 5, 12, 19, 2024

Workshop Lead: Hidetaka Ishii

In this transformative workshop led by Hidetaka Ishii, you are invited to experience how art is an exploratory journey towards truth, generously shared with others. Through a blend of creative writing and performance techniques, you will embark on a three-week exploration.

In the first session, you will learn to unearth your inner narratives and translate them onto the page. As the group progresses, we will transition into the realm of performance, drawing from foundational acting principles to bring our writings to life. Together, you will explore how actors prepare monologues and scenes at the most basic level, and apply that to our performance exercise. Hidetaka's ultimate hope is that this exploration and generous sharing can be applied to all areas of life, and can make anyone’s life a work of art.

Photos by Shaimaa Yakout

Hidetaka Ishii

Hidetaka is a Toronto-based Japanese actor and a cultural connector. His creative flow lives in the resonance, friction, and inspiration that emerges at the intersection between Eastern and Western cultures. As a cultural connector, he spearheads the Japanese Canadian Creative Minds Meetups that has brought together 100+ artists and creatives under the Japanese diaspora. The actor in him LOVES bilingual / cross cultural works, and can be found adapting works to bilingual performance that blurs cultural and language barriers. Professional acting credits include “Pachinko”(2022), “Don’t Hang Up” (2023). He’s very excited to share his experiences and nuances deepened through his community work and performance training to the JAMII community!

Photo by Jodi Laine Thibodeau